


Gunpowder Treason and Plot

by shaggydogstail



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Fireworks, Fluff, Gen, Guy Fawkes Night, M/M, Marauders' Era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-04
Updated: 2016-11-04
Packaged: 2018-08-29 02:09:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,246
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8471473
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shaggydogstail/pseuds/shaggydogstail
Summary: Sirius is determined to make Remus like fireworks.  He is a genius, after all, and not in the least bit sweet.





	

**Author's Note:**

> 5th November is [Guy Fawkes Night](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guy_Fawkes_Night), an annual commemoration of the failed Gunpowder Plot, an attempt to blow up the Houses of Parliament and assassinate King James VI of Scotland and I of England. Guy Fawkes Night is celebrated with bonfires and fireworks throughout the UK and some parts of the Commonwealth. The title of this story comes from the popular nursery rhyme which runs; _Remember, remember the fifth of November, gunpowder treason and plot. We see no reason why gunpowder treason should ever be forgot._

Remus scrunched up his forehead and stared at the blank sheet of parchment in front of him, hoping that, against all the odds, he could somehow make his Transfiguration essay materialise before him by sheer force of will. The contingency was an unlikely one, but became completely impossible when Sirius broke his concentration by whacking him on the back of the head with his scarf.

'Oi, what was that for?'

'I've come to fetch you,' said Sirius, peering over Remus' shoulder at the blank parchment. 'We're going to see the fireworks, remember? Prongs and Wormtail are already on their way.'

'Right,' said Remus, untangling the scarf from the back of his head. 'So why aren't you with them?'

Sirius perched himself on the edge of Remus' desk, knocking a couple of books to the floor as he did so. 'Wormtail's hoping to cop off with that dippy fifth year he's been fawning over for the past term, and thinks that tonight might be his big chance to make a move on her. Prongs is giving him tips.'

Remus snorted. 'He's taking romantic advice from Prongs?'

''Fraid so.' Sirius nodded. 'You see now why I couldn't watch?'

'Some things go beyond the bonds of frienship,' Remus agreed.

'They do indeed,' said Sirius cheerfully. 'Luckily for you, reminding your friends that they are about to miss the fireworks display if they don't get a wriggle on doesn't.' He jumped to his feet again, looking at Remus expectantly. 'C'mon, Moony, we need to get going.'

'I'm not coming,' said Remus. 'I have to finish this for tomorrow.'

'Transfiguration?' asked Sirius, looking at the remaining books on the table. 'Don't worry about it: you can copy my essay in the morning.'

'You've already done it?'

'No, but I will, and _then_ you can copy it,' Sirius explained with exaggerated patience.

'And when am I supposed to do that?' asked Remus. 'You always write your essays at breakfast and it's due in before lunch.'

'It's History of Magic first thing.'

'Oh.' Well, that was fair enough really. 'Can I still copy your essay if I don't come to the fireworks?'

Sirius rubbed the back of his head in confusion. 'Why would you not come?'

Remus shrugged, trying to keep his expression casual. 'I just don't like fireworks that much,' he said, in a tone that suggested it wasn't a big deal, and not the sort of declaration that might make cause Sirius almost painful consternation.

'Don't be silly, Moony,' said Sirius. 'Everybody likes fireworks.'

'Well I don't.'

Sirius stared at Remus with an expression of disbelief tinged with horror on his face. 'How can you not like fireworks, Moony? They're all bright and explode-y. And very educational.'

Remus frowned. He suspected that Sirius' final point was a little disingenuous, though it wasn't strictly untrue. The fireworks display was being put on by Professor Popham as part of the Muggle Studies curriculum. Remus was quietly confident that Sirius had only taken Muggle Studies to annoy his parents, but he wasn't surprised that he was so excited by Guy Fawkes night--the combination of sparkly things, loud noises, and bloody and violent bits of history created a heady mix that Sirius was bound to find irresistable.

'Are they actually using Muggle fireworks?' asked Remus. 'Because I'm not sure how educational it is otherwise.'

'No, magical ones. Apparently they're not so dangerous,' said Sirius. He looked terribly disappointed about it. 'Still, Professor Popham says you get better explosions with magical fireworks,' he added brightly.

'I don't like explosions,' said Remus. 'I'm not going.'

'You're not _scared_ of loud noises are you?' teased Sirius.

Remus rolled his eyes. 'You can't con me into doing stuff by making out I'm chicken,' he said. 'I'm not _you_ , remember.'

'Hmph.' Sirius folded his arms across his chest, looking rather sulky. 'Maybe I'm just disappointed that you're more interested in writing essays than doing stuff with your friends.'

'If that's another attempt to manipulate me, it isn't going to work either,' said Remus. 'You know it isn't true.' He gave Sirius a sly grin, kicking his foot playfully. 'Just because _you_ resent having to write any essays at all, thinking that everyone should automatically recognise your innate genius and give you straight 'O's in your N.E.W.T.s, without you actually having to do any work.'

'Well I certainly don't think I should be expected to write essays for Transfiguration,' said Sirius petulantly. 'If I had my way I'd skip them all and just turn into a dog when the examiners get here. Prongs says I'm not allowed, though.'

'Prongs must be getting responsible in his old age,' said Remus. 'Or perhaps he just doesn't want you to get hauled off to Azkaban?'

'I expect so,' agreed Sirius cheerfully. 'He's nice like that. He'll be disappointed if you don't turn up as well.'

'He'll be too busy recovering from the hexing Evans gives him after he makes one too many cracks about 'bangers' to even notice I'm not there,' said Remus. 'You might as well give up, Padfoot, because I'm not coming.'

'Why not?'

'I told you, I don't like fireworks.'

'But _why_?'

'I just don't!' said Remus, exasperated. 'If you must know, I think they're a bit stupid. Standing around in the cold, freezing your bollocks off for a few flashes of light and some annoyingly loud noises. Fireworks are for kids.'

Sirius boggled. 'How can you _say_ such a thing, Moony?' he asked. 'That's a very un-Marauderly statement to make. It's out and out treachery.'

Remus grinned. 'At least it's seasonal.'

'I hate you.' Sirius pouted.

'Fine, then you won't want me to come to the fireworks display with you, will you?' answered Remus smugly. 'Since I'm such a hateful traitor and all.'

'Do you have to be so completely unreasonable?'

Remus shrugged. 'It's a hobby.'

'Fine!' said Sirius angrily. 'We'll just go without you then.'

'You do that.'

'Right.' Sirius fumed. 'I will.' He turned on his heel and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him as he went.

Remus sighed and bent down to pick up his books. If Sirius was in a proper strop there was no way he'd help Remus with his essay after all. He wondered if Peter had started it yet...

~*~

Sirius clearly _was_ in a strop, Remus decided, because he barely spoke to Remus for the following week. In fact, Remus didn't even see much of him, as Sirius took to sloping off somewhere after dinner each day, and not sneaking back until after lights-out. Remus determined not to give him the satisfaction of asking where he kept going, and didn't ask James either, because he was bound to blab.

Despite himself, Remus couldn't help feeling a little hurt that Sirius wasn't speaking to him, and a bit guilty as well. He hadn't meant to slight Sirius by refusing to go to the fireworks display, he just didn't like fireworks. Sirius could be so touchy sometimes.

He decided just to carry on as normal, and wait until Sirius got tired of sulking and decided to talk to him again. Though Sirius' capacity for bearing grudges was legendary, his boredom threshold usually beat it, at least where people who weren't related to him or Snape were involved. He'd soon forget he was in a mood when he wanted Remus to entertain him for some reason or other.

So it wasn't a huge surprise when Remus was found himself been shaken awake some time after midnight the following Saturday, and blinked up to see Sirius staring down at him, grinning maniacally.

'Wake up, Moony,' he said, shaking Remus' shoulders as he did so.

'I thought you weren't talking to me?' said Remus, sitting up and rubbing his eyes.

Sirius looked confused. 'What are you going on about?' he said. 'I was talking to you just now. I told you to wake up.'

'No, I mean...oh, never mind.' Remus yawned. 'Is there are reason you're waking me up in the middle of the night? Or do you just enjoy tormenting me?'

'Got something to show you,' announced Sirius proudly.

'What is it?'

'Not telling. It's a surprise.'

Remus groaned. Sirius, the middle of the night and surprises were a troubling combination. 'Are Prongs and Wormtail up?'

'No, they're not coming,' said Sirius. 'This is just for you.'

'Why just me?' asked Remus, feeling more than a little anxious. 'What could you have to show me that you don't want the others to see?'

'Ah, well, I'm not telling, 'cos that would spoil the surprise, wouldn't it?' Sirius grinned broadly. Remus repressed the urge to punch him in the face, the insufferable bastard. 'Anyway, Prongs as already seen a bit of it, 'cos I had to get him to help, but you're the only one who really _needs_ to see it all.'

'I'll be the judge of that,' muttered Remus darkly. 'I suppose you'll give me no peace unless I go along with this?'

'None whatsoever,' agreed Sirius happily. 'Now get dressed and get a move on. And mind you wrap up warm--we're going outside.'

Remus couldn't think of very many things he'd like to do _less_ than wander about the school grounds, in the middle of the night, in November, but he wasn't sure he had the strength to say no to Sirius twice in a week. Besides, he did worry that he'd upset Sirius with the fireworks business and supposed it wouldn't hurt to indulge him this time. Cursing his own good nature, Remus dragged himself away from the comfort of his duvet and pulled his robes and the jumper Sirius offered him over his pyjamas.

Half-an-hour later Remus found himself perched on the roof of the North Tower, his teeth chattering and a plan to curse Sirius so that all his hair fell out formulating in his mind.

'Padfoot, what are we doing here?' he complained. 'You said you had something to show me, but all I can see is the night sky and a bloody annoying Animagus.'

'Hush, Moony, patience,' Sirius chided him. He was fiddling about with something near the edge of the roof, though Remus had been forbidden to come close enough to see what it was. 'All will be revealed shortly.'

'All had better be revealed pretty damn soon, before I catch a death of cold,' Remus grumbled.

'You should have said you were cold,' said Sirius as he climbed up the roof and sat down next to Remus. He unknotted the blanket that he'd been wearing like a cape, and draped it over Remus' shoulders. 'Better?'

'Hm.' The blanket had been charmed to stay warm, so Remus _did_ feel a lot less chilly with it. Under the circumstances, he didn't feel Sirius deserved any displays of gratitude, though.

'Pay attention now, Moony, here it is.' Sirius pointed his wand towards the guttering, and murmured an incanation. The edge of the roof seemed to glow slightly, and then a pale, golden light spread out from the Tower, and shot up into the sky.

Ripples of light--gold, red, orange, and purple--soon spread above them, swirling and dancing overhead. The lights twisted and flashed, then started to merge together, eventually forming the shape of a Chinese Fireball, which spread its wings and flew elegantly around the tower.

Remus stared up in amazement as more and more pictures appeared before him, emblazened on the inky-black night in shimmering colours. It really was a very impressive display. A Peruvian Vipertooth turned summersaults in the air, its scales flashing a brilliant shade of copper that lit up the night. When it stopped and let out a silent roar, sending a blaze of fire that sparkled and exploded into a hundred bursts of light, Remus let out a gasp of delight, in spite of himself.

'See, I _told_ you you liked fireworks,' said Sirius smugly, nudging him in the ribs.

'They are rather more exciting than your average fireworks,' admitted Remus. 'Where'd you get them?'

'Made 'em myself,' said Sirius. 'What do you think I've been doing all week?'

'You, made all this?' Remus gestured his arm towards the dancing dragons. 'But making fireworks is really hard--I heard it took Dr. Filibuster _years_ to invent his.'

'Well, I _am_ a genius.'

'And modest with it,' commented Remus. He sat and watched the fireworks for a few more minutes--the dragons had been replaced by a kelpie, which was chasing a herd of lightning-bolt gridylows out across the lake. 'You did all this just to get me to like fireworks?'

Sirius shrugged. 'Wasn't that hard.'

Remus smiled. 'That's awfully sweet of you.'

'I could hex you clean off this roof, you know,' threatened Sirius. 'Send you hurtling to an early death and make it look like an accident.'

'Yeah, you could.' Remus smiled again and rested his head on Sirius' shoulder. 'Not going to though, are you?'

''Course not,' admitted Sirius. 'Fireworks aren't done yet. Least you can do is watch to the end and appreciate all the trouble I went to properly.'

'All right,' agreed Remus. He sighed happily and relaxed as Sirius stretched an arm across his back, pulling Remus closer for warmth, and settled down to enjoy the rest of the show. When a gigantic silver dog bounded over the turrets and towers of the castle, tail wagging and tongue hanging out, Remus laughed inwardly and refrained from commenting at all.


End file.
